count down

I know I said I wouldn’t be back for a month but I’ve been designing an advent calendar on and off for a little while and thought it made a whole lot of sense to post this before advent started, incase you want to have a go at making it. I decided to well and truly ditch a typical Christmas colour palette. Perhaps I’m feeling a little jaded by all the reds and greens that saturate the shops. Each box can hold a chocolate, sweet, toy, message or anything you like.

Download the printable A4 versions here. There are 9 pages worth! Print them onto card and cut around each box. Score along the lines marked below and stick the flaps to the sides of the box with double sided tape or strong glue. I would whole heartedly suggest strong glue. Some of my boxes sneakily popped open after a night’s sleep. Leave the edge marked below, to use for keeping the lid closed. You could also buy some sticker dots to hold the lids closed until they need to be opened.

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milk & cookies

Here’s a quick and easy gift idea that won’t cost very much to make. All you’ll need is...

1. The free template printed onto card.
2. Scissors
3. Stapler
4. Milk bottle sweets
5. Cookies (I used bought but baking a batch would be a far better present)
   

Just download the free printable, in mushroom, pink or turquoise and print the header onto card. Fold horizontally (score for a better fold) and then you’ll need a clear cellophane bag or something similar. I bought mine from trusty Wilkos. Then fill about half of the bag with the milk bottle sweets and cookies and then sandwich the top of the bag in between the the folded header and fix with a staple on either side. Simple as that!

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give your cake some love

Why not give your cake creations something extra with an interesting topper. They certainly aren't just for wedding cakes anymore! I decided to make a carrot cake for my husband's birthday last month. Two tiers sounded like a modest idea so I went with three instead and created a monster. If you fancy giving it a whirl then it's one of Lorraine Pascale's delicious recipe. Any cake that requires 9 eggs is going to be decadent!

I decided to ditch candles and finish it off with my very own birthday cake topper for a bit of fun. If you fancy jazzing up your next birthday cake download the free printable version here. Just print onto card or paper, cut-out and sandwich two wooden skewers or knitting needles between the  two sides when sticking it together. C'est voila! Bye bye candles and glace cherries!

Here are my top 6 cake toppers for a bit of inspiration, all of which could be easily made.

1. Buy this pastel cake bunting here.

2. Get decorative with this tissue and crepe paper pom pom topper.
4. Make yourself a sweet pie topper with alphabet pasta.
5. Get your hands on this tassle topper.
3. Make an adorable teacup cake topper.
6. Buy or make this simple ribbon garland topper.

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hello home cinema

Everyone loves a film night and with the likes of love film it's much cheaper and cosier to do it in the comfort of our own home. I've designed some free DIY paperwear to make the experience a little sweeter. Nick introduced me to sweet and salty popcorn (all mixed up), which I thought was a pretty crazy concept but it was so yummy that I'm not sure I'll ever be able to stick to one at a time! Take my advice and give it a try.  Here are the downloadable templates for the popcorn, label and tickets templates.

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